AQA A LEVEL (7702/1) ENGLISH LANGUAGE
PAPER 1 LANGUAGE, THE INDIVIDUAL AND
SOCIETY LATEST 2025-2026 EXAM UPDATE
QUESTION AND ANSWERS
Jenny Cheshire (1982) - Answer-Model: Dominance.
Studied playgrounds in Reading.
Differences between boys and girls starts during childhood.
Peer- Pressure is more important than Gender.
Boys use more non standard forms more frequently, "they was outside".
The variations of language is controlled by various social and linguistic
factors.
Pamela Fishman (1983) - Answer-Seemed to agree with Lakoff &
Spender. Her researched indicated that:
1. Women ask more questions and use more backchannelling support.
2. Women do more of the conversational work, she called this
"Conversational Shitwork", she felt this was due to women's inferior
position in society.
,3. Women may speak this way to maintain an inferior position to be in
relationships with men.
4. She also focused on tag questions, she listened to 52 hours of pre
recorded conversations between young American couples. Women use
four times as many tag questions than men.
CRITICISMS:
1. Limited sample size.
2. Grouped women like Lakoff did earlier.
Candice West (1984) - Answer-Model: does not fit within a clear
model.
Doctor-patient conversations. West states that powerful doctors will
dominate and interrupt more unless the doctor is a woman and then he
will interrupt her.
CRITICISMS:
1. Does this theory involve an issue of gender?
2. Outdated.
3. Gender is not the only factor, only factors are important as well.
Nicola Woods (1989) - Answer-Model: Dominance
Studied the workplace. Woods found that:
, even though some women might have a higher status, men will still
dominate the conversation, this must show that Gender is more
important than power.
CRITICISMS:
1. Gender is not the only consideration to make.
2. Outdated, society has changed since the late 80's.
Baker & Freebody (1989) - Answer-Model: does not fit within a clear
model.
Reading books study:
1. Girls are characterised with adjectives like "Pretty".
2. Boys are represented within reading books as being brave and
naughty.
3. Mothers use domestic verbs.
4. Men use action verbs.
Eckert (1990) - Answer-Model: Dynamic.
She raises the point that many theorists are just looking at biological sex
rather than gender. Categorising people as men and women is far too
simplistic.
Influenced Janet Hyde's Similarity Hypothesis. She stated that gender
interacts with age, class, ethnicity etc..
PAPER 1 LANGUAGE, THE INDIVIDUAL AND
SOCIETY LATEST 2025-2026 EXAM UPDATE
QUESTION AND ANSWERS
Jenny Cheshire (1982) - Answer-Model: Dominance.
Studied playgrounds in Reading.
Differences between boys and girls starts during childhood.
Peer- Pressure is more important than Gender.
Boys use more non standard forms more frequently, "they was outside".
The variations of language is controlled by various social and linguistic
factors.
Pamela Fishman (1983) - Answer-Seemed to agree with Lakoff &
Spender. Her researched indicated that:
1. Women ask more questions and use more backchannelling support.
2. Women do more of the conversational work, she called this
"Conversational Shitwork", she felt this was due to women's inferior
position in society.
,3. Women may speak this way to maintain an inferior position to be in
relationships with men.
4. She also focused on tag questions, she listened to 52 hours of pre
recorded conversations between young American couples. Women use
four times as many tag questions than men.
CRITICISMS:
1. Limited sample size.
2. Grouped women like Lakoff did earlier.
Candice West (1984) - Answer-Model: does not fit within a clear
model.
Doctor-patient conversations. West states that powerful doctors will
dominate and interrupt more unless the doctor is a woman and then he
will interrupt her.
CRITICISMS:
1. Does this theory involve an issue of gender?
2. Outdated.
3. Gender is not the only factor, only factors are important as well.
Nicola Woods (1989) - Answer-Model: Dominance
Studied the workplace. Woods found that:
, even though some women might have a higher status, men will still
dominate the conversation, this must show that Gender is more
important than power.
CRITICISMS:
1. Gender is not the only consideration to make.
2. Outdated, society has changed since the late 80's.
Baker & Freebody (1989) - Answer-Model: does not fit within a clear
model.
Reading books study:
1. Girls are characterised with adjectives like "Pretty".
2. Boys are represented within reading books as being brave and
naughty.
3. Mothers use domestic verbs.
4. Men use action verbs.
Eckert (1990) - Answer-Model: Dynamic.
She raises the point that many theorists are just looking at biological sex
rather than gender. Categorising people as men and women is far too
simplistic.
Influenced Janet Hyde's Similarity Hypothesis. She stated that gender
interacts with age, class, ethnicity etc..
